Well, Alibi Jones' Aunt Anita did not believe him when he told her they'd discovered The Eldred were still alive. Now Alibi, Kit and Piccolo travel to the colony world of Rigel Four to see if old family friend and expert scientist Dr. Krishnavurti – Krish from Vatican Assassin! – can help them track down their kidnapped friends, currently in the clutches of the Eldred! Writer Mike Luoma narrates from his novel – listen in for free Science Fiction Adventure and Chapter Eight of the novel Alibi Jones on this episode. The Adventures of Alibi Jones continue on Glow-in-the-Dark Radio!
Links:
Alibi Jones – paperback: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/paperback/product-15119626.html
Hardcover: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/hardcover/product-16186477.html
eBook: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/4034
Free @ Podiobooks: http://podiobooks.com/title/alibi-jones/
Free @ iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/alibi-jones/id336328492?mt=2
Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?asin=B003I8M0W2&qid=1369530051&sr=1-1
Home(s): http://glowinthedarkradio.com http://alibijones.com http://mikeluoma.com
Mike Luoma Writes Science Fiction, Comic Books, and This Blog...
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Saturday, June 22, 2013
"But The Eldred are DEAD?!?"
Will Alibi Jones' Aunt Anita believe him when he tells her what they've discovered? The Eldred are supposed to be dead! Listen in as writer Mike Luoma narrates his novel – hear free Science Fiction Adventure, Chapter Seven of Alibi Jones on this episode. The Adventures of Alibi Jones continue on Glow-in-the-Dark Radio!
Links:
Alibi Jones – paperback: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/paperback/product-15119626.html
Hardcover: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/hardcover/product-16186477.html
eBook: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/4034
Free @ Podiobooks: http://podiobooks.com/title/alibi-jones/
Free @ iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/alibi-jones/id336328492?mt=2
Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?asin=B003I8M0W2&qid=1369530051&sr=1-1
Home(s): http://glowinthedarkradio.com http://alibijones.com http://mikeluoma.com
Links:
Alibi Jones – paperback: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/paperback/product-15119626.html
Hardcover: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/hardcover/product-16186477.html
eBook: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/4034
Free @ Podiobooks: http://podiobooks.com/title/alibi-jones/
Free @ iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/alibi-jones/id336328492?mt=2
Audible: http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?asin=B003I8M0W2&qid=1369530051&sr=1-1
Home(s): http://glowinthedarkradio.com http://alibijones.com http://mikeluoma.com
Sunday, June 16, 2013
That New Science Fiction Movie "Man of Steel"...
...I liked it!
Man of Steel is a science fiction movie, more than a superhero film. And a pretty good one at that. A fun ride. Felt like Superman filtered through the grittier sensibility J. Michael Straczynski brought to Supreme Power, his take on Marvel's Superman analogue Hyperion and other Justice League inspired "heroes". It is a "darker" take on Superman's origin story, but no grimmer than the first couple of X-Men movies.
It is massive in scale, epic in the amount of destruction displayed, and an admirable attempt at answering the "What if?" of how the world of 2013 would handle the appearance of a powerful alien among us. They do a pretty neat job of that. Felt so contemporary to me that it was a little jarring when someone first calls the city Metropolis instead of New York - just the briefest, "oh yeah."
Henry Cavill makes a great Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman - his ability to convey his character's maturation and acceptance of his unique place in the universe gives weight and development to what could have been a two-dimensional role. The dialogue was sometimes too... obvious? But both Cavill and Amy Adams - best Lois Lane yet - made it work.
Don't want to spoil any plot points... but I did like the way the story was put together. If flashbacks bother you? You'll be bothered. One thing that bothered me was the overuse of shaky-cam and sudden zooms - a little hand-held goes a long way for me. Instead of making me feel like I'm watching captured action, after a while I'm just annoyed. Got annoyed a couple of times.
But overall I would recommend the movie. Pretty neat new take on the Superman story.
Man of Steel is a science fiction movie, more than a superhero film. And a pretty good one at that. A fun ride. Felt like Superman filtered through the grittier sensibility J. Michael Straczynski brought to Supreme Power, his take on Marvel's Superman analogue Hyperion and other Justice League inspired "heroes". It is a "darker" take on Superman's origin story, but no grimmer than the first couple of X-Men movies.
It is massive in scale, epic in the amount of destruction displayed, and an admirable attempt at answering the "What if?" of how the world of 2013 would handle the appearance of a powerful alien among us. They do a pretty neat job of that. Felt so contemporary to me that it was a little jarring when someone first calls the city Metropolis instead of New York - just the briefest, "oh yeah."
Henry Cavill makes a great Clark Kent/Kal-El/Superman - his ability to convey his character's maturation and acceptance of his unique place in the universe gives weight and development to what could have been a two-dimensional role. The dialogue was sometimes too... obvious? But both Cavill and Amy Adams - best Lois Lane yet - made it work.
Don't want to spoil any plot points... but I did like the way the story was put together. If flashbacks bother you? You'll be bothered. One thing that bothered me was the overuse of shaky-cam and sudden zooms - a little hand-held goes a long way for me. Instead of making me feel like I'm watching captured action, after a while I'm just annoyed. Got annoyed a couple of times.
But overall I would recommend the movie. Pretty neat new take on the Superman story.
Saturday, June 15, 2013
They're Alive? Them?!?
Links:
Alibi Jones –
paperback: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/paperback/product-15119626.html
Free @ Podiobooks: http://podiobooks.com/title/alibi-jones/
We’re part
of the Comic Related Podcasting Network – you can find us each week at http://comicrelated.com.
Friday, June 14, 2013
The "Reboot" Question...
Reading the reviews for Man Of Steel and discussing the coming new movie with friends, I've been running into a repeated question, almost a complaint - why do movie makers feel a need to "reboot" an existing superhero franchise with a new origin story?
While there's an argument to be made that telling another origin story may not be a creatively rich idea, in some ways the Superman franchise is a perfect illustration of how a reboot ain't necessarily a bad idea - as well as an illustration of how picking up an existing franchise years later might not work as well as some people think.
Haven't yet seen Man of Steel - I'm writing this the Thursday night before it opens - but I'm hoping for the best. Looks like it's going to be pretty good - we'll see. It's definitely a reboot, a retelling of the origin tale. Which makes sense in this case. And maybe in most cases when some years have gone by since the last movie(s). But how many years? Hard to say.
A friend on Twitter said that as someone possessing limited knowledge of comic characters, she prefers origin stories, makes it easier to connect with characters and plot. But I do think some time has to go by - the recent Spider-Man reboot struck many as coming way too soon, for example. Not sure how long, but five years? Way too soon. The James Bond movies should have served as their example - change actors, move on.
How about twenty-six years? Or even nineteen? Those are probably allowable spans of time for a reboot. But Bryan Singer wasn't interested in going that route when he was handed the Superman franchise seven years ago. Flush off his success with the X-Men, Singer decided his Superman movie would pick up where Richard Donner's had left off.
Superman Returns was a cinematic love letter to Donner and Christopher Reeve's movie Superman, picking up right after events in Superman II - originally released in 1980 - and pointedly ignoring the third and fourth movies with Reeve. Singer had basically decided against a reboot, and instead made a movie that would fit with the earlier ones. But the unintended side effect was that Singer created a film that felt dated on opening day. The seventies' sensibilities that informed Reeve's Superman and which were recreated in Singer's homage didn't connect with the younger movie-going public.
It didn't work. Superman Returns did okay at the box office, but any sheen it possessed has been tarnished by passing time. Released just seven years ago, its dated quality makes it feel like it's been much longer since we've seen a Superman film. And despite Superman Returns being made in 2006, it feels like we haven't yet seen a movie Superman for the 21st century.
One of the complaints folks had with Superman Returns was that there wasn't any real fighting - "No punching!" was the gripe. By the looks of it's trailers and previews, Zack Snyder listened to those grumblings. Appears there will be punching in Man of Steel. That wasn't a problem for me, but all the same, I am looking forward to seeing what Snyder, adviser Christopher Nolan and screenwriter David Goyer have cooked up for ol' Superman!
While there's an argument to be made that telling another origin story may not be a creatively rich idea, in some ways the Superman franchise is a perfect illustration of how a reboot ain't necessarily a bad idea - as well as an illustration of how picking up an existing franchise years later might not work as well as some people think.
Haven't yet seen Man of Steel - I'm writing this the Thursday night before it opens - but I'm hoping for the best. Looks like it's going to be pretty good - we'll see. It's definitely a reboot, a retelling of the origin tale. Which makes sense in this case. And maybe in most cases when some years have gone by since the last movie(s). But how many years? Hard to say.
A friend on Twitter said that as someone possessing limited knowledge of comic characters, she prefers origin stories, makes it easier to connect with characters and plot. But I do think some time has to go by - the recent Spider-Man reboot struck many as coming way too soon, for example. Not sure how long, but five years? Way too soon. The James Bond movies should have served as their example - change actors, move on.
How about twenty-six years? Or even nineteen? Those are probably allowable spans of time for a reboot. But Bryan Singer wasn't interested in going that route when he was handed the Superman franchise seven years ago. Flush off his success with the X-Men, Singer decided his Superman movie would pick up where Richard Donner's had left off.
Superman Returns was a cinematic love letter to Donner and Christopher Reeve's movie Superman, picking up right after events in Superman II - originally released in 1980 - and pointedly ignoring the third and fourth movies with Reeve. Singer had basically decided against a reboot, and instead made a movie that would fit with the earlier ones. But the unintended side effect was that Singer created a film that felt dated on opening day. The seventies' sensibilities that informed Reeve's Superman and which were recreated in Singer's homage didn't connect with the younger movie-going public.
It didn't work. Superman Returns did okay at the box office, but any sheen it possessed has been tarnished by passing time. Released just seven years ago, its dated quality makes it feel like it's been much longer since we've seen a Superman film. And despite Superman Returns being made in 2006, it feels like we haven't yet seen a movie Superman for the 21st century.
One of the complaints folks had with Superman Returns was that there wasn't any real fighting - "No punching!" was the gripe. By the looks of it's trailers and previews, Zack Snyder listened to those grumblings. Appears there will be punching in Man of Steel. That wasn't a problem for me, but all the same, I am looking forward to seeing what Snyder, adviser Christopher Nolan and screenwriter David Goyer have cooked up for ol' Superman!
Saturday, June 08, 2013
Alibi On The Run!
Hear chapters
four and five of the science fiction novel Alibi Jones on this episode -
Alibi Jones and his cellmates escaped from the Tek'Tah. Now they figure out
their next move – can they pick up the trail of the reptilian aliens who
kidnapped their friends? Listen in and find out! Writer Mike Luoma narrates
stories from his books every week on this podcast. Free Science Fiction Audio fun
–
The Adventures of Alibi Jones continue on Glow-in-the-Dark Radio!
Links:
Alibi Jones –
paperback: http://www.lulu.com/shop/mike-luoma/alibi-jones/paperback/product-15119626.html
Free @ Podiobooks: http://podiobooks.com/title/alibi-jones/
We’re part
of the Comic Related Podcasting Network – you can find us each week at http://comicrelated.com.
Saturday, June 01, 2013
Escapist Entertainment! With Alibi Jones...
The
Adventures of Alibi Jones continue on Glow-in-the-Dark Radio. We're
still near the start of the first book – Hear chapters two and three of the
science fiction novel Alibi Jones on this episode,
as Alibi and his cellmates plot escape from their Tek'Tah prison cell... Can
they get away from the reptilian aliens? Listen in and find out! Writer Mike
Luoma narrates stories from his books every week on this podcast. Free Science
Fiction Audio fun with The Adventures of
Alibi Jones!
Podiobooks: http://podiobooks.com/title/alibi-jones/
The Adventures of Alibi Jones #1 – Expanded
Edition from Glow-in-the-Dark Radio Comics:
Alibi
Jones and the Time War of The Devrizium
We’re part
of the Comic Related Podcasting Network – you can find us each week at http://comicrelated.com.
Guest Post at Wore Out - "Five Song Friday..."
Caitlin Pierce who writes the Wore Out Vermont style blog was kind enough to ask me to participate in her Five Song Fridays! I picked out five new songs you might not know… yet. A bunch of favorites that I’m hoping become other folks’ faves, too… check it out on her blog: Five Song Friday with Guest DJ Mike Luoma!:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)